Working from home is steadily becoming one of the most beloved places to work. People are no longer as excited to go into an office every day. The commute, the money spent on travel, the long and often rigid hour set up, the forced meetings and tedious internal conversations have all become a fashion of the past. The new and modern way of working is setting up your own home office. Finding an occupation or task to do from home where you can earn well is the first big hurdle. One avenue that can be considered is to become a bookie, as you can easily do this from the comfort of your home.
The term bookie is slang for bookkeeper. Similar to being a bookkeeper who tracks the accounting records of an establishment, a bookie does something relatively similar. This article aims to expand on the term bookie and offer insight into what this occupation consists of and some of the most important skills to have to succeed in this job.
What is a bookie?
A bookie is someone who takes bets from punters on certain sports events. They create a space where anyone interested in making sports bets can place wagers. Bookies can be thought of as facilitators for gambling and are often known to focus on the sports betting industry. It is an occupation that is in high demand as placing bets and understanding wagers is not everyone’s cup of tea, which is where the knowledge of bookies comes into play.
Bookies place the bets that punters want to lay down on behalf of the punter. If the punter wins, the bookie pays them out without question. The bookie earns money by charging a fee for the service. Should you not know much about betting and wagers, try to think about the stock exchange. The bookie is similar to the broker. The broker is the middleman between the person putting down money on a stock and the earnings/losses of the stock exchange. The broker charges a fee for the service for acting as the middleman. It is much the same with a bookie, as they charge what is called a PPH, Per Head fee for their service of balancing accounts, making and managing bets and being responsible for payouts.
This is a legitimate occupation, it is just important to know the laws and regulations around sports betting in your specific state before reaching out to a bookie. Legalities often change from state to state and it is the responsibility of the punter to know how things stand.
Important Skills to Become a Bookie
Some certain traits and skills make becoming a bookie a bit easier. The world of sports betting is an exciting arena to operate in and becoming a bookie can be equally exhilarating. The below lists outlines some helpful tips for becoming a bookie:
- A great grasp of numbers: Placing bets, maintaining balance with bets, understanding wins and losses, being able to read bets, issuing wins and collecting services fees are all made up of numbers. As a bookie, it is important to be good with finances.
- Sports knowledge: Being a passionate sports fan, knowing the history of certain players and games and being up to date on the latest sports news is a hugely important area of expertise needed to be a great bookie.
- Stay organized: As bookies manage many punters’ wagers, they need to stay organized when handling so many different streams of money. Bookies need to be able to stay on top of things when it comes to each punter’s bet, this is to ensure the correct payouts and provide a professional service.